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Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill

My Lords, it will be Defra. It will be sooner than it would have been; it will be as soon as possible. It is our intention that the consultation package will be published later this month. We spent many hours on the CROW Act and it would have been difficult to incorporate into it a marine Bill. I suggest to both noble Baronesses who have spoken that consultation and the subsequent discussions and debates that we will have on the marine Bill will be the appropriate opportunity to look at how our proposals might affect the important issue of local offshore developments. We have sympathy with the aims of the noble Baroness and I hope that she will accept and understand why we cannot accept this amendment. I am sure that, like us, she will welcome the fact that there will be consultation and progress. I hope that the noble Baroness, Lady Byford, does not ask me how soon ““soon”” is; it will be soon.